Israel rebuffs Chomsky

Noam Chomsky, a leading American intellectual highly critical of Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians, was denied entry to the West Bank on Sunday by Israeli immigration officials.

Chomsky, 82, told Reuters in a phone conversation from the Jordanian capital, Amman, he had traveled to the Allenby Bridge crossing on the Jordan River where Israeli immigration officials refused to allow him across.

“They apparently didn’t like the fact that I was due to lecture at a Palestinian university and not in Israel,” Chomsky, who is Jewish, said.

Chomsky’s Palestinian host, lawmaker Mustafa Al-Barghouti said the American linguistics professor and philosopher was due to lecture at Birzeit University and the Institute for Palestine Studies in Ramallah in the West Bank.

“This decision is a fascist action, amounting to suppression of freedom of expression,” Barghouti told Reuters.

An Israeli Interior Ministry spokeswoman said immigration officials at the border crossing had misunderstood Chomsky’s intentions thinking initially he was also due to visit Israel.

She said officials were trying to get clearance from the Israeli military, which controls access to the West Bank to allow Chomsky to enter.

“We are trying to contact the military to clear things up and if they have no objection we see no reason why he should not be allowed in,” spokeswoman Sabine Hadad said.

Chomsky said he was on a speaking tour in the region and added his schedule was too tight to allow him to try again to enter the West Bank during his current trip as he had other engagements.

Chomsky said he last visited Israel and the West Bank in 1997 when he lectured at Ben-Gurion University and also at Birzeit. He said all his previous West Bank visits had been as a part of trips to Israel.

Chomsky is a trouble maker, he always has been.
These Left wing ‘intellectuals’ always side with the devil and have no moral compass.
Israel has absolutely no need to apologise for refusing him entry.

mashoud on May 18, 2010 5:08 am

In barring Noam Chomsky from entering the West Bank and then to lecture at a Palestinian establishment of higher learning is yet another example of the paranoia of the Israeli authorities.

The Israeli cabal would go to great lengths to stop people like professor Chomsky to enlighten the world on the horrendous deeds of the Zionist agenda.
It seems Israel is afraid to hear the truth lest the world wakes up to the reality of the apartheid state that pretends to be a democracy.
American people better make note of this incident.